President Mahama reopens refurbished Adomi Bridge

The refurbished Adomi bridge (c) Facebook 

President John Mahama has reopened the rehabilitated Adomi bridge at Atimpoku in the eastern region to commuters, Saturday afternoon.

The 335 metre suspension steel bridge across the Volta river was refurnished at a cost of 12.9 million euros by Bilfinger MCE GmbH of Austria within the period of 20months. 

The rehabilitation saw  the reinforcement of  steel beams  beneath the bridge deck, replacement of the hanger cables holding  the suspended  deck  to the steel arch, replacement of concrete on steel deck with asphalt and the provision pedestrian concrete walkway.

Speaking at the recommissioning ceremony, President Mahama noted that, the rehabilitation became necessary following deep cracks that have developed on  parts of the steel beams as a result of excess weight from overloaded trucks.

He therefore  cautioned  drivers  to adhere to axle load requirement and urged officials of the Ghana highways authority to enforce  the laws by  not allowing overloaded  trucks to access to the bridge, in order to elongate its life span.

The Adomi bridge which  connects  the Volta region  to other parts of the country through  the eastern region, was close to traffic in  March 2014, for its  first  major rehabilitation after it was constructed over  five decades ago.

President Mahama taking the ride on the bridge (c) Facebook 

Whiles acknowledging the  inconvenience caused to   commuters, President Mahama  said the closure  was a necessary evil to avert  any disaster and commended motorists for their patience during the period.

Togbe Tepre Hodo, paramount chief of Anfoega traditional area who represented the Volta region house of Chiefs commended government for the project and  called for a routine maintenance plan for the bridge.

Present at the ceremony were the regional ministers for the Volta and Eastern regions, Helen Ntoso and Antwi Bossiako Sekyere respectively as well as other government officials and traditional leaders.

Meanwhile, the two ferris at Senchi are expected to be decommissioned early January to be  sent to Dambai and Yeji to augment the ones on the Volta lake.